Football dreams from village of Wawu

Editor's note: The following photo feature tells the inspiring story of a new girls' football team at a school deep in the mountains of southwestern China's Sichuan province. The school, located in the village of Wawu at an altitude of more than 2,600 meters, was reopened in 2004 by a newly certified teacher, Qubi Shigu. 

In the years since, the school grew from four students to 272, and the once impoverished area with no electricity or road access is now a place where local girls harbor big dreams to become professional football players.

An aerial photograph of the village school in Wawu enveloped in fog in the mountainous Daliangshan region in southwest China's Sichuan province. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Qubi Shigu, who came to Wawu 15 years ago and reopened the village school, teaches math to six-grade students. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

The Wawu football team cheer as they go about their daily training. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

The girls' football team of the Wawu school was formed in September this year with 27 students. This photo shows the girls at their physical training session. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

The school playground becomes muddy due to the rains and fog. Still, a student wearing Nezha(a deity in Chinese folk)-labelled shoes feels like she is wearing Nezha's "wind-and-fire wheel" when playing football. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Emu Youluo, a sixth-grade student who wears the No.4 jersey, is the only female football player who can compete with the boys. Emu is a highly-effective striker and joins a boy's match after the training session with the girls' football team. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Emu Youluo is the only child in her family. Her father is a local farmer and her mother is a migrant worker. Her favorite football club is Real Madrid, and she is a big fan of Cristiano Ronaldo. Speaking of her favorite female football player, she adores Marta Vieira da Silva, the Brazilian legend who has been named FIFA World Player of the Year six times. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Members of the girls' football team practicing dribbling and shielding in the freezing November cold in the Daliangshan mountainous region of China's Sichuan province. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Every time the teachers' team compete with boys' team, members of the girls' football team observe on the sidelines. Some use their phones to record the match, which they review and learn from after. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Qubi has special plans for the development of the newly established girls' football team. "In this semester, we will try to grow their interest through training sessions on basic skills. If everything goes well, they can compete with other teams in our county," Qubi said. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn] 

After putting in years of hard work to improve the village school's facilities, Qubi Shigu, who is himself a football enthusiast, decides to popularize the sport among children in this area. In line with the school slogan which says "let our village school become a place full of dreams and hopes," Qubi hopes his students to explore their potential and dream big. [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]

Group photo of the girls' football team and Qubi Shigu (on the right) and two other coaches. "I hope football can help these children see the world," Qubi says. "That is my greatest motivation." [Photo by Chen Weisong/China.org.cn]